The invention relates to installation and removal of components of a computer.
A typical computer system has memory that stores programs and data. Quite often, the memory is formed from several dynamic random access memory (DRAM) or synchronous DRAM (SDRAM) memory semiconductor packages, or chips. To aid in the removal or addition of several memory chips at once, groups of memory chips typically are packaged together to form a memory board, or memory module (e.g., a SIMM or a DIMM).
The memory module typically includes several memory chips which are mounted to a printed circuit board (PCB). The PCB has circuitry that electrically connects the memory chips together, and the PCB is constructed to plug into memory module connector slot of the system and electrically connect the memory chips to the connector slot.
Typically, to replace a memory module of a computer system, the power to the computer system must be turned off and the computer must be rebooted. As a result, operations (e.g., executing software programs) on the system typically must be shut down to install or remove memory modules.
Accordingly, a system is needed wherein memory modules can be added to or replaced within a computer system without interrupting power and without requiring rebooting.
To remedy the deficiencies of existing systems and methods, the present invention provides, among other things, a device and a method for adding memory to a computer system. In an exemplary embodiment, the present invention provides a method comprising the steps of: determining if a memory module has been added to a connector; responsive to the determination that the memory module has been added to the connector, determining whether the addition was a hot add; and responsive to the addition being a hot add, initializing the memory module. The step of initializing the memory module can include dynamic initialization and may not require rebooting.
In another embodiment, a method of the present invention can include the step of determining if the added memory module is compatible with a memory configuration of the computer system. Additionally, the present invention can include the step of setting a status bit, the status bit indicating that the memory module has been added. In yet another embodiment, the present invention can include the step of responsive to the determination that the memory module has been added to the connector, generating an interrupt.
One skilled in the art can recognize that the present invention can also include an apparatus or computer system for performing any combination of the steps described herein.